Contents -BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORD

Thomas Humphry Ward, ed. The English Poets. 1880–1918.rnVol. I. Early Poetry: Chaucer to Donne

Gawain Douglas (c. 1474–1522)

Extracts from the Aeneid: A Scottish Winter Landscape

THE FROSTY regioun ringis of the ȝeir,

The tyme and sessoune bitter cald and paill,

Thai schort days that clerkis clepe brumaill;

Quhen brym blastis of the northyne art

Ourquhelmit had Neptunus in his cart,

And all to schaik the levis of the treis,

The rageand storm ourwalterand wally seis;

Reveris ran reid on spait with watteir broune,

And burnis hurlis all thair bankis downe,

And landbrist rumland rudely wyth sic beir,

So loud ne rummist wyld lioun or beir.

Fludis monstreis, sic as meirswyne or quhailis,

For the tempest law in the deip devallyis.

Mars occident, retrograide in his speir,

Provocand stryff, regnit as lord that ȝeir;

Rany Orioune wyth his stormy face

Bewalit of the schipman by his rays;

Frawart Saturne, chill of complexioune,

Throw quhais aspect derth and infectioune

Bene causit oft, and mortale pestilens,

Went progressiue the greis of his ascens;

And lusty Hebe, Junois douchtir gay,

Stud spulȝeit of hir office and array.

The soill ysowpit into wattir wak,

The firmament ourkest with rokis blak,

The ground fadyt, and fauch wolx all the feildis,

Montayne toppis sleikit wyth snaw ourheildis,

On raggit rolkis of hard harsk quhyne stane,

With frosyne frontis cauld clynty clewis schane;

Bewtie wes lost, and barrand schew the landis,

With frostis haire ourfret the feildis standis.

Soure bittir bubbis, and the schowris snell

Semyt on the sward ane similitude of hell,

Reducyng to our mynd, in every steid,

Goustly schaddois of eild and grisly deid,

Thik drumly scuggis dirknit so the hevyne.

Dym skyis oft furth warpit feirfull levyne,

Flaggis of fyir, and mony felloun flawe,

Scharp soppis of sleit, and of the snypand snawe.

The dowy dichis war all donk and wait,

The law vaille flodderit all wyth spait,

The plane stretis and every hie way

Full of fluschis, doubbis, myre and clay.

Our craggis, and the front of rochis seyre,

Hang gret isch schoklis lang as ony spere;

The grund stude barrand, widderit, dosk and gray,

Herbis, flouris, and gersis wallowit away;

Woddis, forestis, wyth nakyt bewis blout,

Stud strypyt of thair weyd in every hout.

So bustuysly Boreas his bugill blew,

The deyr full dern dovne in the dalis drew;

Smal byrdis, flokand throw thik ronnis thrang,

In chyrmyng and with cheping changit thair sang,

Sekand hidlis and hirnys thaim to hyde

Fra feirfull thudis of the tempestuus tyde.

The wattir lynnis routtis, and every lynde

Quhyslyt and brayt of the swouchand wynde.

Puire laboraris and byssy husband men

Went wayt and wery draglyt in the fen;

The silly scheip and thair lytill hyrd gromis

Lurkis vndir le of bankis, wodys, and bromys;

And wthir dantit gretar bestial,

Within thair stabillis sesyt into stall,

Sic as mulis, horsis, oxin and ky,

Fed tuskit baris, and fat swyne in sty,

Sustenit war by mannis gouernance

On hervist and on symmeris purviance.

Widequhair with fors so Eolus schouttis schyll

In this congelyt sessioune scharp and chyll,

The callour air, penetrative and puire,

Dasyng the bluide in every creature,

Maid seik warm stovis, and beyne fyris hoyt,

In double garmont cled and wyly coyt,

Wyth mychty drink, and meytis confortive,

Agayne the storme wyntre for to strive.